In 2006, the Senate voted to reform immigration, and passed S. 2611, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006, by a vote of 62-36. The legislation included a new temporary worker visa, a path to legal status for illegal immigrants, tougher border security and a program to crack down on employers who hire illegal workers. The Senate bill varied widely from the House bill, H.R. 4437, the Border Protection Antiterrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. The differences between the two bills will need to be resolved in conference. NFIB worked successfully with the House Judiciary Committee to improve the legislation for small-business owners by reducing penalties for small business. NFIB will continue to monitor these bills as they go through the conference process to ensure that small businesses are not unduly burdened by employer mandates.
Highlights of NFIB Research Foundation Member Survey on Immigration
- Small-business owners see illegal immigration as a serious problem, but are divided on which solution will best address the issue.
- Nearly half of respondents say there should be no amnesty under any circumstances and half hold the opposite position. A sizeable majority (63 percent) oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants if they only need to prove that they have been living in the U.S. for at least three years, but members are split on amnesty if illegal immigrants are employed and not dependent on government services (45 percent favor, 45 percent oppose).
- Seventy-eight percent of NFIB members support increasing penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
- Small-business owners would consider verification of an ID used by an employee to prove eligibility to work a moderate burden. However, the burden could be reduced by a single location verification/authorization system that would certify document authenticity.
| Side-by-Side Comparison of Worker Verification Provisions | ||
| S. 2611 | H.R. 4437 | |
| Title | The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 | The Border Protection Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 |
| Workplace enforcement | Creates a mandatory Electronic Employment Verification System (modeled after the Basic Pilot program) to verify identity and employment eligibility | Creates a mandatory Electronic Employment Verification System (modeled after the Basic Pilot program) to verify identity and employment eligibility |
| Phase-in of verification system | New hires would need to be verified 18 months after sufficient appropriations have been made to implement this program | New hires need to be verified within 2 years of enactment and previously hired employees must be verified within 6 years of enactment |
| Recordkeeping requirements | Employers must retain either a paper, microfiche, microfilm, or an electronic version of the verification forms for a period of 5 years after the hire date or 1 year after the termination date. | Employers must retain either a paper, microfiche, microfilm, or an electronic version verification forms for a period of 3 years after the hire date or 1 year after the termination date |
| Civil monetary penalties | $500-$4,000 per employee for the first violation; $4,000 to $10,000 per employee for the second time in a year; and $6,000 to $20,000 per employee for the third violation in one year | $5,000-$7,500 per employee for the first violation, $10,000-$15,000 per employee for the second violation; and between $25,000-$40,000 per employee for the third violation |
| Reduced fines for small business | No such provision | Small employers will be eligible for reduced fines based on size: 60% reduction for employers with up to 25 employees, 40% reduction for employers with up to 100 employees, and 20% reduction for employers with up to 250 employees |
| Criminal penalties | Caps fines at $20,000 per employee and provides a maximum time for imprisonment of 3 years | Caps fines at $50,000 per employee and provides for a minimum of one year imprisonment |
| Recordkeeping penalties | An employer that fails to comply with recordkeeping requirements is subject to fines of $200 to $2,000 per violation for the first of such violations; if the employer has had one previous fine in one year then $400 to $4,000 per violation, and if the employer has been fined more than once in 2 years then $600 to $6,000 per violation | No such provision |
